Perfect in her flaws
by Neverbeenthefirsttosmile
Summary: After Rose dies Damon isn't quite the same, for that matter neither is Elena. Her eyes are open to the man Damon is becoming and as he grows into this being Stefan feels threatened and shrinks as a man.   First fanfic ever so...   fast writing...


Chapter I:

Aftermath of the Rose. 

Elena watched Damon burn what was left of Rose's body. Her heart broke the slightest bit for him, as she perceived the small cries he was emitting whilst throwing the body into the raging fire.

She turned away and headed back into the house, not wanting Damon to know she'd been watching. Not only would it be an embarrassing ordeal for her but also he would get angry with her and he was unstable enough as it was.

Even though he hadn't admitted it, he had gotten deeply attached to Rose in the short time they had spent together and her brutal death, which she had met at his hands probably reminded him of how suddenly he had lost Katherine as well.

Elena sighed one last time before properly entering the Salvatore house.

"There you are!" Exclaimed Stefan grabbing her hand and dragging her up to his room.

"Stefan?" She giggled, amused with his strange attitude. "What are you doing?"

As soon as he closed the door he turned to her and cupped her face, spreading her eyes open a little wider and inspecting her spinning her round so he could check on her completely.

"Are you okay?" He asked hugging her very closely and tightly to his frigid body.

"I'm fine." She replied, bewildered by his strange inspection of her.

"Did Damon or Rose hurt you in any way?"

"No. Stefan. What is wrong with you?" She asked getting a little bit frustrated.

"I was just worried about you. You spent all day with a demented vampire and the lover who had to kill her."

"Damon is my friend and so was Rose." Elena shrugged. "I know she did horrible things to me when we first met but it was all justified. She was trying to save herself and… Trevor. And Damon? Damon has not had it easy. Everyone is expecting him to snap and turn into some kind of a monster. I won't deny that his identity was that of a monster in the past but he is changing. Redemption is possible for everyone Stefan. I just wished you believed in your brother like I believed in you."

"You're right but tell me this: how close are you and Damon?" Stefan interrogated clasping her hands in his.

"Enough is enough Stefan." She snatched her hands away and ran down the stairs away from Stefan's decidedly irritating presence.

Elena went into the Salvatore boarding house's large, decadent living room where she was sure she would find Damon drinking his sorrows away, and sure enough… There he was, a glass of bourbon in hand.

"What do you want?" He said in desperation.

"To talk to you." She replied calmly aware of the danger she was putting herself in by taking his glass of bourbon away and stealing a sip while she did.

"Elena. Now is not the time to mess with my head." He growled at her.

"How is me stealing your drink messing with your head?" She questioned, raising an eyebrow, which despite the circumstances Damon found endearing and softened his gaze a bit.

"Just give it back Elena." He made a grab for it.

"Uh-uh." She tutted holding it out of his grasp, which would have been impossible if Damon hadn't been drunk and accumulating sorrow.

"Elena. I swear tonight is not the night to toy with my emotions, which I am oh so happy to feel again."

"I'm sorry." She nodded solemnly handing him his glass back. "I just think it would be best if you didn't get drunk tonight…"

"Why? Give me one good reason. And because I'm asking you does not count."

"Damon. You lost a friend. You have every right to be upset and to get drunk and to go crazy. I'm just saying it probably isn't the best idea to get drunk. You might do things you regret."

"Like what? Kissing you? Already been done. Don't worry Elena. You're safe." Damon fell onto the couching, nursing his near empty glass.

"You know that's not what I mean." Elena said, slightly exasperated by both Salvatore brothers. Despite this fact she went to sit beside him.

"Please Elena." He whispered, a single tear making it's way down his icy cheek.

"I'm sorry for your loss." Elena whispered taking his hand in hers and squeezing it slightly before letting go, kissing his cheek lightly and standing up to leave.

"Thank you Elena." Damon whispered barely audible for her to hear but she did and she stopped dead in her tracks.

"That's what friends are for Damon." She smiled wanly before completing her way to the door and leaving the Salvatore house so she could go home to her own house.

"What a girl…" He whispered in wonder, chugging the end of his glass.

"You bastard!" Stefan came thundering down the stairs and launched himself at Damon.

"What now brother?" Damon mused darkly, his eyes oozing desperation.

"Elena is mine!"

"Elena is her own person. She belongs to no one but herself. You seem to forget it often."

"Watch it Damon. I may not always be this lenient."

"Don't get crazy kiddo. I'm still more powerful."

"We'll see about that."

Damon watched Stefan march out of the mansion angrily and he chuckled. Not because it was funny but because he knew he was going to laugh or cry and he preferred the first alternative.

Damon knew Stefan wasn't right for Elena; she had a quality to her, which was quite mysterious. Stefan didn't seem to understand her. He coddled her and refused to let anyone get too close to him, yet, despite that they had developed a strong bond. He and Elena. It was an interesting idea. At first it seemed absurd to him that Katherine's doppelganger should drive a wedge between them once more but Elena was so much more than that. She was kinder than Katherine; Elena was a well of infinite goodness. Flawed as she was, it was what made her perfection. In Damon's eyes at least.


End file.
